Pre-charged ground coffee capsule

ABSTRACT

A pre-charged ground coffee capsule is described. The capsule has a container body made of a metal foil material combined with a film of thermoplastic material. The container body is open at one end, the end being joined to a closing surface made of the same material. The container body is associated with a structural stiffening member provided with a plurality of through-openings and arranged in a plane which is substantially perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the container body.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims priority to Italian patent applicationGE2010A000009 filed on Jan. 26, 2010 and incorporated herein byreference in its entirety.

FIELD

The present disclosure relates to devices for preparing alimentarybeverages, and particularly to a pre-charged ground coffee capsule.

BACKGROUND

For many years now the preparation of coffee, both for domestic use andfor professional use, both in machines requiring manual preparation andin automatic and semi-automatic machines, involves the use ofpre-charged capsules or pods of varying shape and design which normallyhave a dual function, the primary function being that of allowingpreparation of the coffee infusion without using coffee powder in looseform, so that the working process is “cleaner” and general maintenanceis simpler.

A major problem with regard to the choice of materials and the structureto be given to the pre-charged capsule or pod, consists in achieving asuitable compromise between robustness and efficient use; in otherwords, if, on the one hand, the water-permeable materials such as filterpaper, non-woven fabric and the like ensure an effective use of thecapsule or pod, on the other hand they give rise to notable defects bothfrom the point of view of storage and as regards positioning inside thefilter holder.

Document EP1997748, in the name of the same Applicant, describes apre-charged ground coffee capsule comprising a container body with apolygonal cross-section, and preferably a circular cross-section, whichis made of a liquid-impermeable material, open at one end and providedon the bottom wall with a large axial opening, two walls ofliquid-permeable material being arranged, respectively, above said openend and along said bottom wall; said impermeable material comprises asupport layer made of metallic material and a layer of thermoplasticmaterial facing the inside of said container body, said permeable wallsbeing joined to said container body by means of said layer ofthermoplastic material, an outwardly projecting radial flange beingprovided at said open end of said container body.

This type of pre-charged capsule solves many of the problems associatedwith the prior art, but nevertheless has a number of drawbacks. Inparticular, the structure so designed, although being effectivelyconfigured, is somewhat weak and therefore poses problems from the pointof view of packaging and use by the end user. Comparing this type ofpre-charged capsule with those made entirely of thermoplastic resin, itis entirely clear that the latter have better handling properties andare easier to use both in espresso coffee machines and in traditional“moka” or similar coffee machines, but have the problem that theyrequire further packaging, preferably in an inert atmosphere, in orderto preserve the aroma of the coffee powder.

SUMMARY

In accordance with several embodiments of the present disclosure, apre-charged ground coffee capsule is provided which, on the one hand, isable to preserve the quality of the product contained therein and, onthe other hand, has a structural strength which allows it to be managedeasily both during storage and during use.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, a pre-charged groundcoffee capsule is provided, comprising a preferably cylindrical orfrustoconical container body made of a metal foil material combined witha film of thermoplastic material, said container body comprising astructural stiffening member provided with a plurality ofthrough-openings and arranged in a plane which is substantiallyperpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said container body. Saidstiffening member has arranged thereon a water-permeable layer of filtermaterial facing the inside of the container body.

According to a further aspect, said stiffening member includes asubstantially disc-shaped element comprising a peripheral ring and aplurality of radial elements converging toward the center and equallyspaced from each other. A recess communicating with the aforementionedopenings is preferably formed in the center of said member.

Alternatively, said stiffening member can be provided with a peripheralwall which is perpendicular to the plane of said stiffening member, saidwall being continuous or discontinuous. Furthermore, such a wall can beprovided with an outwardly projecting radial flange.

In a further embodiment, the bottom wall of said stiffening member canbe made so as to be deformable and it is provided with means adapted toperforate the wall of said container body at the outwardly-facing sidethereof.

Alternatively, said stiffening member is positioned externally of saidcontainer body and it is provided with means adapted to perforate thewall of said container body at the outwardly-facing side of its bottomwall. In a preferred embodiment, said stiffening member is provided witha plurality of channels formed at the internal side-wall thereof andcommunicating with the bottom wall.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other advantages and features will be apparent from the followingdetailed description of certain embodiments of the same which areprovided by way of illustration, and not by way of limitation, withreference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a section view of a first embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 2 is a cut-away perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a section view of a second embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 4 is a cut-away perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a section view of a third embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 6 is a cut-away perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a section view of a fourth embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 8 is a cut-away perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a section view of a fifth embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 10 is a cut-away perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a cut-away perspective view of a sixth embodiment of thepresent disclosure;

FIG. 12 is a section view of the embodiment of FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a cut-away perspective view of a seventh embodiment of thepresent disclosure;

FIG. 14 is a section view of the embodiment of FIG. 13;

FIG. 15 is a section view of an eighth embodiment of the presentdisclosure; and

FIG. 16 is an exploded perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 15.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of the pre-charged capsule according tothe present disclosure; 1 denotes the container body of the pre-chargedcapsule according to the disclosure. Said container body 1 is providedwith a bottom wall 101, a continuous side wall 111 and a closing surface201; both the container body 1 and the closing surface 201 are made of ametal foil material, such as aluminium or the like, combined with alayer of a thermoplastic resin, such as polyethylene or the like, whichallows them to be joined together. The stiffening member 2, which has acentral cavity 102 and on which a layer of filter material 202 isplaced, is arranged along the bottom wall 101 of the container body 1.As can be seen more clearly from FIG. 2, which shows a cut-awayperspective view of the pre-charged capsule, the member 2 comprises anannular element 302, which has the same cross-section as the bottom wall101 of the container body 1, and a plurality of radial elements 312converging towards the cavity 102 and forming the openings 322 directedtowards the bottom wall 101 of the container body 1.

FIG. 3 shows a second embodiment of the capsule according to thedisclosure; the same parts are indicated by the same numbers. In thiscase, the stiffening member 3, in addition to comprising an annularelement 303 and the radial elements 313 (see FIG. 4) in a similar mannerto that described for the embodiment in FIGS. 1 and 2, also has acontinuous axial wall 403 which is arranged so as to actually contactwith the side wall 111 of the container body 1. The layer 203 of filtermaterial is placed on the surface of the member 3.

Entirely similar in nature is the embodiment shown in FIGS. 5 and 6,where the axial wall 404 of the stiffening member 4 has an outwardlyprojecting radial flange 414 onto which the closing surface 201 of thepre-charged capsule is joined. Otherwise, the stiffening member 4 hasthe annular element 304 and the radial elements 314 converging towardsthe cavity 104 and forming the openings 324 on which the layer 204 offiltering material is positioned.

In the variant embodiment shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the stiffening member5 has axial webs 405 which are joined at one end to the annular element305, placed in contact with the bottom wall 101 of the container body 1,while at the opposite end they are connected to the flange 415projecting radially outwards. In this case also, the stiffening member 5has the annular element 305 and the radial elements 315 convergingtowards the cavity 105 and forming the openings 325 on which the layer205 of filtering material is positioned.

The embodiment in FIGS. 9 and 10 shows the stiffening member 6 arrangedin contact with the closing surface 201 instead of with the bottom wall101. As can be noted from FIG. 10, although the arrangement is shown asbeing completely overturned with respect to that of the devices of theembodiments previously shown and described, the characteristic featuresof the member 6 are in fact entirely the same. Said member 6 has theannular element 306 and the radial elements 316 converging towards thecavity 106 and forming the openings 326 on which the layer 206 offiltering material is positioned. As a particular feature, the member 6has the outwardly projecting radial flange 406 which practically acts asa support for the closing surface 201 on the one hand, and for theoutgoing edge of the side walls 111 of the container body 1 on the otherhand.

FIG. 11 shows a further embodiment of the pre-charged capsule accordingto the disclosure. In this embodiment, the stiffening member 7 isprovided with a continuous side wall 107 similar to that of theembodiment according to FIGS. 5 and 6; the bottom wall 207 is formedwith a central portion 217 substantially shaped as a dome and in themanner of an undulating membrane. The more rigid axial portion 227 hasformed therein the nibs 237 which project axially outwards. Thecontainer body 1 encloses the member 7, and the closing surface 201 ismounted onto the edges of the radial flange 117 projecting from the sidewall 107. FIG. 12 shows, with reference to the same numbers, thestructure of the dome portion 217 and the more rigid central portion 227of the bottom wall 207, as well as the series of holes 247 formed in thedome portion 217.

FIG. 13 shows a further alternative embodiment of the presentdisclosure. In this case, the container body 1 is inserted inside themember 8 which in this case imparts rigidity to the container bodyitself, supporting it externally. The bottom wall 101 of the containerbody 1 faces the bottom wall 208 of the member 8, which is provided witha plurality of through-holes 218 and pyramidal reliefs 228. In FIG. 14it is possible to note the arrangement of the bottom wall 101 of thecontainer body 1 very close to the pyramidal reliefs 228.

FIG. 15 shows a further embodiment of the present disclosure, andparticularly a variant of the embodiment shown in FIGS. 13 and 14. Inthis case also, the stiffening member 9 is located outside of thecontainer body 1, and the bottom wall 209 of the stiffening member alsohas pyramidal reliefs 219 in a similar way to that envisaged in the wall208 of the stiffening member 8 as shown in the embodiment according toFIGS. 13 and 14. In this case, however, the side wall 109 and the flange119 connected thereto have grooves 129 which connect the bottom wall 209to the environment outside of the pre-charged capsule. As can be notedfrom the exploded perspective view in FIG. 16, the container body 1 isarranged inside the stiffening member 9 so that its outer walls create,in cooperation with the grooves 129, channels communicating with thebottom of the member 9.

The operating principle of the pre-charged capsule according to thepresent disclosure will become clear from the description below. Asalready mentioned, a pre-charged capsule totally made of a metal foilmaterial such as aluminium or the like, internally lined with a plasticmaterial, provides a light and impermeable packaging, but on the otherhand is an object which is not very strong from a structural point ofview and which may give rise to problems both during storage handlingoperations and during final use. The insertion of a stiffening memberinside the capsule enhances the management thereof as regards these twodifferent aspects; if in the embodiment according to FIGS. 1 and 2, thestiffening member has a certain prominence in the structure of thepre-charged capsule, in the embodiments according to FIGS. 3, 5 and 7,the container body 1 and the closing surface constitute in fact thesealing casing of a pre-charged capsule which has a structure mademainly of plastic, but which takes advantage from the fact of beingcompletely lined by a container which isolates it from the externalenvironment. Practically, the container body 1 in the embodimentsaccording to FIGS. 3 and 5 ceases to be a container body in the fullsense, while it is still partly so in the embodiment according to FIG.7, and becomes instead a lining which allows the pre-charged capsules tobe configured without the need for further packaging which is normallyadded in order to preserve the integrity of the coffee aroma. In fact,the container body 1 and the closing surface 201 may be sealed togetherin a controlled atmosphere, for example an inert-gas atmosphere, so thatthe contents of the capsule are preserved without further measures.

The embodiment according to FIGS. 11 and 12 has, in addition to thefeatures of the embodiments shown in the other figures and describedabove, also provides a characteristic feature relating to the system forpreparing the coffee infusion. In fact, the central portion 217 of thebottom wall 207 is designed so as to be sensitive to variations inpressure caused by the entry of hot water under pressure inside thecontainer body 1 and, therefore, its expansion causes the central rigidportion 227 to come into contact with the bottom wall 101 of thecontainer body 1 and, in particular, openings are formed in the bottomwall itself via the nibs 237. At this point, once the coffee infusionhas passed through the holes 237 in the wall 207 of the stiffeningmember 7, it can percolate outside through the opening(s) formed in thecontainer body 1 by the action of the nibs 237 projecting from theportion 217 of the bottom wall 207.

The embodiments in FIGS. 13, 14 and 15, 16 are based on a functionalconcept slightly different from that described hitherto. In fact, inboth cases, the stiffening member is positioned outside of the containerbody 1. As a result of this choice, it has also proved appropriate todesign the bottom wall of the said stiffening member with a plurality ofholes, and the said stiffening member has been provided with means whichallow fluid communication between said bottom wall and the externalenvironment. The aim is to cause the collapse, upon entry of hot waterunder pressure inside the container body 1, of the bottom wall 101 ofthe container body itself against the reliefs on the bottom wall of thestiffening member; then, the infusion may be discharged towards thedispensing and/or collection means via the holes formed in the bottomwall or via channels formed in the side walls.

1. Pre-charged ground coffee capsule comprising a container body made ofa metal foil material combined with a film of thermoplastic material,said container body being open at one end, said end being joined to aclosing surface also made of a metal foil material combined with a filmof thermoplastic material, said container body being associated with astructural stiffening member provided with a plurality ofthrough-openings and arranged in a plane which is substantiallyperpendicular to a longitudinal axis of said container body.
 2. Thepre-charged capsule according to claim 1, wherein said stiffening memberis located within said container body.
 3. The pre-charged capsuleaccording to claim 1, wherein said stiffening member is located outsidesaid container body.
 4. The pre-charged capsule according to claim 2,wherein said stiffening member is provided with a peripheral wall whichis perpendicular to a plane of said stiffening member.
 5. Thepre-charged capsule according to claim 4, wherein said peripheral wallis provided with an outwardly projecting radial flange.
 6. Thepre-charged capsule according to claim 4, wherein said peripheral wallis discontinuous and formed by a plurality of parallel webs which areequally spaced from each other.
 7. The pre-charged capsule according toclaim 2, further comprising a water-permeable layer of filter materialarranged on said stiffening member and facing an inside of saidcontainer body.
 8. The pre-charged capsule according to claim 2, whereinsaid stiffening member includes a substantially disc-shaped elementcomprising a peripheral ring and a plurality of radial elementsconverging toward the center of the stiffening member and equally spacedfrom each other, said radial elements defining a plurality of openings.9. The pre-charged capsule according to claim 8, further comprising arecess communicating with the plurality of openings, the recess beingformed in the center of said stiffening member.
 10. The pre-chargedcapsule according to claim 4, wherein said stiffening member comprises abottom wall provided with a flexible dome shaped portion and, centrally,with a more rigid body which is provided with perforating means, whereina plurality of openings is formed in said wall.
 11. The pre-chargedcapsule according to claim 3, wherein said stiffening member is providedwith a peripheral wall which is perpendicular to the plane of saidstiffening member.
 12. The pre-charged capsule according to claim 11,wherein said wall is provided with an outwardly projecting radialflange.
 13. The pre-charged capsule according to claim 11, wherein saidstiffening member is provided, on its bottom wall, with reliefsprojecting toward said container body.
 14. The pre-charged capsuleaccording to claim 13, wherein said bottom wall is provided withthrough-holes.
 15. The pre-charged capsule according to claim 13,wherein said side wall is provided with a plurality of channelscommunicating with said bottom wall.
 16. The pre-charged capsuleaccording to claim 1, wherein the container body is cylindrical orfrustoconical.